The subject matter disclosed herein relates generally to diagnostic imaging systems, and more particularly to an apparatus for supporting and method for forming a support for a superconducting magnet in a Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) system.
MRI systems and Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) imaging systems can include a superconducting magnet that generates a temporally constant (i.e., uniform and static) primary or main magnetic field. MRI data acquisition is accomplished by exciting magnetic moments within the primary magnetic field using magnetic gradient coils. For example, in order to image a region of interest, the magnetic gradient coils are sequentially pulsed to create pulsed magnetic gradient fields in a bore of an MRI scanner to selectively excite a volume corresponding to the region of interest in order to acquire MR images of the region of interest. The resultant image that is generated shows the structure and function of the region of interest.
In MRI systems, the superconducting magnet is an electromagnet that is commonly formed from a plurality of superconducting magnetic coils surrounding and supported by a magnet coil support structure. When the superconducting magnetic coils are deenergized, the coils move. The magnet coil support structure maintains the position of the superconducting magnetic coils along and around the support structure.
The magnet coil support structure for MRI systems is typically formed from fiberglass cloth using a wet winding process wherein fiberglass is applied to and wound around a cylindrical shaped mandrel. During the formation of the magnet coil support structure, multiple layers of fiber cloth are dipped into a liquid epoxy and applied to the mandrel. The fiberglass is then cured to form the magnet coil support structure having a solid body. The superconducting magnet coil support structure is then removed from the mandrel and channels are cut along the exterior of the magnet coil support structure to support the superconducting magnet coils therein.
The formation of the magnet coil support structure using fiberglass cloth that results in a filament wound composite former typically does not have sufficient strength at end flanges of the former. In particular, the end flanges include shear planes at the flange corners that require the flanges to be formed as thick structures. As a result, the total length of the magnet coil support structure and complete magnet assembly is longer. Accordingly, short magnet designs for MRI systems are very difficult or impossible to manufacture. Moreover, forming the magnet coil support structure from metal, for example, to allow shorter magnet designs, is costly.